Back to the Past
by Mrs Grim
Summary: *In Prog*A strange room takes the Marauders back to a past that they find themselves trapped in. Now, they are running for their lives, while keeping their senses of humor... *re-posted*
1. Prologue: Rooms

**A/N: I uh- took this off before, but I now have time to work on it! Hmmm…I already have about 4 stories going on. So, what do I do? I start another one, of course!  
  
Dicclaimer: This belongs to J.K. Rowling...any original characters are mine.  
  
Back to the Past  
By Mrs Grim  
  
  
Prologue  
**  
There are many secrets in Hogwarts, or so they say. There are also many rooms. Infinite quarters in which things are kept. Albus Dumbledore himself admitted that even HE did not know all of the secrets that Hogwarts holds.  
  
Back to the rooms. Some are there by accident. Others were put there for a reason. Some bring good. Others hold evil. Some can be entered anytime. Others can be stepped into only when certain qualifications are met. The others. They are the ones most feared-and most unexpected. They-  
  
But, wait. It is easier to explain about what can happen in a story. A story of what DID happen once…  
  
  
  
**Please review!  
  
Mrs Grim**  



	2. A very boring day, a strange little room...

**Disclaimer: All these characters (save Dara) and some of the places were created by J.K. Rowling and are hers. Anyone not hers is mine.  
  
  
Back to the Past  
By Mrs Grim  
  
Chapter One  
A very boring day, a strange little room, and a chance in a million that worked**  
  
It was another boring weekend at Hogwarts. Yes, even Hogwarts could be boring. The Marauders would be the first to tell you.  
  
Lily was asleep, her head in her book. Sirius and Remus were half-heartedly playing a game of Exploding Snap. Sirius kept yawning and the only reason Remus wasn't comatose was that the explosions were deafening. Dara, Lily's best friend, was half helping Peter do his homework. Since, however, it was clear that he was a hopeless case, she was amusing herself by feeding him wrong answers.  
  
James surveyed the common room in complete frustration. Angrily, he kicked the nearest table and was rewarded by a nearly broken toe.  
  
Lily opened her eyes to see her boyfriend hopping about the room on one foot, cursing. Dara watched James, half hoping that he would fall over and break his leg or something. Not that she was malicious or anything. It WOULD be something new and different, after all.  
  
No such luck. James plopped onto the couch next to Lily and pulled a face. Even though he was at his last year of Hogwarts and was seventeen years old, he still was having a bad case of the sulks.  
  
"I'm bored," he whined, "There's nothing to do!"  
  
"Aren't we being melodramatic today," Lily commented sleepily.  
  
"He's right, though," Dara sighed, coming to sit next to Lily, "There is NOTHING to do."  
  
"Well," Lily said, thinking, "Searching the Forbidden Forest-"  
  
Sirius interrupted, "Been there, done that, still have the scars."  
  
"Okay, well- how about playing pranks on the Slytherins. That's an old favorite!"  
  
"Nope," Remus said sadly, "The extra violent cheering charms haven't worn off them yet. They'd just grin like idiots if we dropped a dung bomb down their pants."  
  
"We didn't hit Snape," Peter reminded them.  
  
"He's probably hiding behind all his happy little friends, scared to death of us finding him," Dara said.   
  
"We HAVE to go do something!" James cried, "Anything! Before I go crazy-"  
  
"But I thought you were already-"  
  
"Shut up, Sirius!"  
  
James got to his feet and headed for the portrait hole.  
  
"Where are you going?" Lily called.  
  
"To explore the castle," he replied.  
  
They hurried after him.   
  
"Yoohoo, James! We HAVE explored the whole castle. Remember the Marauders' Map?" Sirius reminded him.  
  
"Well, " James said slowly, stopping. "Dumbledore is always saying that there are hidden rooms and also rooms that only appear sometimes. Maybe we'll find one."  
  
Remus scoffed, "C'mon, James! That chance of that happening is very slim."  
  
"One in a million," Sirius added.  
  
"It could be dangerous," Peter added his eyes shifting in the general direction of the safe common room.  
  
They all looked at each other. As one body, they began to walk again.  
  
"Alright."  
  
"It's worth a try, after all."  
  
"Beats that essay I still haven't done."  
  
"This is not a good idea," Peter told them, but he didn't leave.  
  
Why can't I keep my mouth shut? He thought sadly, I should know better! They thrive on risk.  
  
"C'mon guys!" James said, walking backwards, nearly missing the large statue of an extremely ugly troll, "What could possibly happen?"  
  
Then he disappeared.  
  
Lily blinked slowly and stuck her arm into the wall James had backed into. It went through. With a cry of surprise, she found herself pulled through.  
  
Dara pursed her lips, "Wonderful! Trust James to find something strange potentially dangerous like this."  
  
Sirius raised an eyebrow, "I thought you liked dangerous things."  
  
"When I discover them," she replied haughtily and disappeared along with Lily and James. The three left behind exchanged looks and followed.  
  
  
What lay behind the wall was certainly a room that they had never explored before. Amazingly, it seemed to be perfectly safe. This disappointed Sirius.  
  
"I would have at least expected some excitement or something! A room, hidden mysteriously! I wonder if anyone had ever been here before?"  
  
The others were inspecting the small room. It was adorned in plush, comfortable chairs and a fireplace warmed it. No one seemed to find it strange that they fire kept burning with no one to tend to it.  
  
Lily and Dara were inspecting the objects, mostly pictures, on the fireplace mantle and giggling.  
  
Peter was getting nervous as usual. He had a strange feeling that this could not be good. He got his shaking legs to move to the wall and he stuck his hand at it sharply to get out again.  
  
"OUCH!"  
  
"What IS the matter?" Sirius asked, looking up from an object that he was examining.  
  
Peter held his finger, which wasn't broken but felt like it, and stuttered.  
  
"The w-wall-"  
  
"Yes," Dara said rudely, "that IS a wall-"  
  
"What do you suppose this is?" Sirius said, almost to himself. The object was stuck to a table. It was definitely an hourglass.  
  
Peter was still attempting to tell them about the wall.  
  
"It- it- my finger! Can't get- can't out!"  
  
"Did you get any of that?" Lily asked Dara.  
  
"Nope."  
  
James noticed Sirius, who had gotten the object free.  
  
"What are you doing, Padfoot?"  
  
"It looks like a Time Turner, Prongs, but it had no chain to put around anyone."  
  
"We can't get out!!!" Peter finally yelled frantically.  
  
Several things happened at once. Lily stepped towards the wall and tripped over a book. Another person entered the room, unseen. Sirius, curious creature that he is, turned over the Time Turner and placed it back on the table. He frowned at it while everyone held their breath.  
  
"Nothing?" he asked in outrage, "What a cheap-"  
  
The room moved, or rather, it seemed to. James had just enough time to use a choice swear before the room filled with light and they were no longer at Hogwarts.  
**  
  
Yay! Chapter one!   
  
Review!  
  
Mrs Grim**  



	3. Unexpected company, writings from the lo...

**A/N: Tangible Visions you are the BEST! I like this story too! I don't know what's wrong with people…*cries*  
  
Back to Past  
By Mrs Grim  
  
Chapter Two  
Unexpected company, writings from the long dead, and an impossible task**  
  
It was the feeling of a portkey jerking not only the occupants, but the room itself somewhere. The light faded slowly. The ground, hard and bare, shook under their feet. Or, rather, under other parts of their anatomy. They had all fallen to the ground. All seven of them.  
  
Seven? You ask, counting with your fingers to make sure. Yes, seven.  
  
No one noticed the extra body at first. They were all too worried about being alive.  
  
Lily went up to James and kissed him so thankfully that his eyes widened like dinner plates.   
  
Dara went up to a grinning Sirius and slapped him so hard that he swore.  
  
"Damn it! What was that for?" he asked, rubbing his cheek.  
  
"Oh, hmm…Let me see," she stared, faking intense concentration. Then she stuck her face in his and yelled, "For almost getting us killed, you blockhead! And don't think you can get off for what you're GOING to do!"  
  
Sirius was truly perplexed, "What? I haven't-"  
  
"Oh, but you will! There's always SOMETHING you have to do wrong, Sirius Black. Let's try to get back to Hogwarts in our original pieces, okay? Or is that too hard for you?"  
  
Sirius was totally unperturbed, however. He started to laugh. Dara stared at him in disbelief.  
  
Then, the newcomer made his mistake. He spoke.  
  
"For once, I am inclined to agree with a Gryffindor," said a voice dripping with disdain, "You can't do anything right, can you, Black? Now you've got us in a bloody mess!"  
  
This got everyone's attentions. And it got everyone's tempers started.  
  
"No way," Lily said flatly.  
  
"I'm having a nightmare, right?" Dara asked pleadingly.  
  
"I could even bear being in the middle of nowhere," Sirius commented, "But NOT with that slimy git for company."  
  
Severus Snape realized his mistake and began to back away. They advanced on him.  
  
"What are you doing here?" James' voice was so cold that you would shiver by just hearing it.  
  
"You were wandering the halls, so I did my duty to make sure that you were apprehended before you could pull any of your- childish jokes."  
  
Sirius surged forward, but was held back by Dara.  
  
"No way," she told Sirius, "He's mine. I'll show him 'childish jokes'! Let's see him sneer like that without a face!"  
  
Remus caught a hold of her and Snape looked worried for the first time. He tried to be calm.  
  
"Did you think I'd want to be stuck with the marauders," he spat out the word mockingly, "Or that I was following you to be a part of your little gang? I don't want to be stuck here anymore than you do. And especially not with you of all people."  
  
"The general feeling is reciprocated," Lily said blandly, "the sooner we get out of this the better."  
  
Peter was shaking, "What and wh-where is this?"  
  
Everyone surveyed the scene for a few short moments. There was no sign of life. It was, as Sirius had remarked, the middle of nowhere. No trees, no roads, only a few pathetic weeds peeked through the soil. The dirt covered the whole landscape as far as they could see. Everything was flat and lifeless.  
  
"Wow,'' Remus said, almost reverently, "Where are we?"  
  
"And when are we," James added, "And what happened? That was unlike any Time Turner that I've ever seen!"  
  
There was a whispering sound of paper from behind him. Lily had her head in a book and was softly turning the pages.  
  
"It's a Time Turner but- but this is the only one like it in the world-and in time! Look!"  
  
Everyone, except Snape, who told them he wouldn't go near them to save his life, crowded around the book.  
  
"I picked it up just before we were- taken here," she told them, "it was on the floor of that room." She frowned, "Guys, it's written by three of the founders. Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Gryffindor."  
  
Sirius was standing on James' foot, which was rapidly losing all feeling, and he was also being elbowed in the ribs.  
  
"Read it out loud, Lily," he suggested. The crowd dispersed somewhat as they found seats on the ground.  
  
''All right, here goes.  
  
" 'Dear friend(s), since you are reading this, we assume that you have fallen victim to Salazaar's scheme. It was his plan to rid the world of Gryffindors. Having failed to kill Godric, he tried to think of another way. Unfortunately, he is very intelligent. He devised a way to put a secret room in Hogwarts. It would open up only for someone with Gryffindor blood. Once it was opened, there was no escape. It could be entered, but no exited.   
  
" 'We became aware of his plan, however, and made this book to aid you in the case that he would succeed in bringing you here. Yes, it is our time now. He is alive and he intends to kill you. Preferably by his own hand, but he isn't too picky.  
  
" 'With that said, however, you can still get back. You must make it to Hogwarts. ALL of you (if there is more than one) must remain alive. If any of you are killed, the future is in danger. Once you arrive at the castle, we will help you as well as we can. You must find the same room that you were transported here by and it will take you back.  
  
" 'Please hurry! The future depends on you. All of you. We do not know where he had you sent to, or we would have made preparations to help you from there.  
  
" 'Good luck to you, our friends! May you arrive safely! We await you as you read this.  
  
" 'Sincerely, Rowena Ravenclaw, Godric Gryffindor, and Helga Hufflepuff.'"  
  
There was silence as they pondered the fullness of their task. Then James spoke what they were all thinking.  
  
"We're dead meat."   
**  
A/N: To be continued…Incidently...a new chapter of Dreams don't Die is up...(Of course htis is not a plug! Why would you think that?)  
  
Mrs Grim  
**  



	4. Some dark magic, a whole lot of confusio...

A/N:  Hehe!  Geez, Ron's Secret Admirer!  You made my day!  You're a *sniff* great reviewer!  You propelled me on when I was considering stopping.  *another sniff* Thanks! Disclaimer: Is my name J.K. Rowling?…I didn't think so…as you can see, my name is Mrs Grim.  Therefore I am not J.K. Rowling.  Therefore I do not own Harry Potter.  Thank you. 

Why is the spacing messed up?!  Oh, well, sorry!

Back to the Past 

**By Mrs Grim**

**Chapter Three**

**Some dark magic, a whole lot of confusion, and an eerie little town**

There was silence for a moment after James spoke.  Everyone seemed resigned to their strange fate.  They were lost in the middle of nowhere hundreds and hundreds of years before they were even supposed to be born.  Surprisingly, Peter was the one to speak up.

"Well?" he asked, looking around at them, "Well?!" No one spoke.

"Are you just going to sit there and WAIT for Slytherin to come and kill us?  Are you just going to give up and let him get you?  Let a _Slytherin_ beat you?"  They stirred restlessly and Snape huffed quietly.

"Well," James started, "this is different." He began to walk off across the infinite plain of sand, "There's nothing here!  Even if we tried, we'd probably never get out of here!  It goes on forever!"

"Well," Remus said slowly, "There would be a chance if we knew where we were!" He too got up and began to walk around, examining the sand.

Dara cleared her throat, "It seems to me that Peter is right, however.  It goes somewhat against our principles to just let this go.  I think that we should at least make an effort.  I mean, sitting here waiting for Slytherin to put a knife in our backs is really not an attractive thought.  But that's just me…"

Snape was staring at the ground thoughtfully.

"Don't move any further," he told them suddenly.

"What?" James asked, startled.

"Don't move anywhere," he said, engrossed in his studies of the surroundings.

"Why-"

"Just don't!"

James shook his head, and found a way to relieve his frustration, "I can't believe we had to get stuck here with HIM," he grumbled.

"Yeah," Remus declared, "And we can't even leave him in the past, either.  A great opportunity wasted." 

"We could," Sirius said hopefully, "Maybe no one would even notice.  They'd probably even throw us a party when we got back if-"

Lily silenced him with a glare.

"Like it or not, he's coming.  Maybe he won't be so bad.  We ought to give him a chance…" she looked at their expressions and fell silent.

"Right, Lily," her best friend said a bit sardonically, "whatever you say."

 They stewed in silence until it was broken by a startled yelp from somewhere in their vicinity.  

"What-"

"Who?"

"It's Peter!" Sirius exclaimed, "He's gone!"

It seemed indeed that Peter was gone, although they could still hear him faintly.

Sirius started to walk towards the noise.

"Don't move!!!" Snape fairly shrieked.

"Look, Snape, you may be here, but that does not mean that I have to listen to you."

"Look, Black," he replied in a cold, even tone, "I may not be able to stand the sight of you, but if you're killed we all are doomed."

"What are you talking about?" Lily yelled over to him.  
  


"You Gryffindors really have led sheltered little lives.  It's dark magic."  
  
They gave his statement the reverent silence that it deserved.  They'd all eat worms before they admitted that he was right, though.

"Well, you know dark magic!" Dara shouted at him.  This was common knowledge. "DO something!

Snape turned around and muttered a few words that no one heard under his breath.  The scenery seemed to blur and it slowly faded into another very different landscape.  Below there feet was green grass instead of sand.  Where, before, there was nothing in the distance, a cliff had appeared perilously close to them.  A drop to the bottom would mean certain death.

"Peter!" Lily cried and rushed to the edge.

"If he's dead…" James started, but did not finish.  Peering over, he saw that Peter was not dead, but he surely would be in a minute.

"Help!" Peter cried.  His feet had found a rock that had jutted out of the side of the cliff and there he clung, 30 feet down.

Fear shone on Lily's face, "Hurry!  Let's get him up!  Quickly!" she implored.

Sirius put on a look of extreme concentration and conjured a thick rope.  Luckily, there were trees in the vicinity.  Tying the rope to one, they let the other end down to poor Peter who was somewhat on shock.  He was, however, able to hold onto the rope long enough to be pulled to safety.  He arrived, gasping in terror, at the top of the precipice.  Dara let out her breath.

"Thank goodness!"

"That was very lucky," a voice behind them commented. "Too bad it won't do you any good now."

Behind them, stood Salazaar Slytherin.  He looked a little like his portraits at Hogwarts, but he was much younger, probably in his late twenties.  He didn't have as many scars, but the look of loathing and that supercilious smile were the same. 

"Smart, very smart, I wouldn't have expected Gryffindors to know dark magic." He surveyed them, then he looked surprised as he saw Snape.

"I'm not a Gryffindor," Snape said the word as if it was some fatal disease.

Slytherin looked sad for a moment, "I am sorry that you have to be caught up on this, but so be it." He raised his wand.  Before he could so much as start the spell, Snape had his wand out.  Before Slytherin could react to that, he was hit with a curse.  Slytherin disappeared.

Peter shied away from Snape in horror, "Wh-what did you DO to him?!"

"Nothing much.  He simply made the mistake of underestimating us because he has a bloated ego.  He'll be back soon enough, though so I suggest we go." The others reluctantly started to move away from the cliff.  Beyond that was a dirt road, forests and hills in the distance.

"I meant we should be in somewhat of a hurry," Snape announced, "I don't want to be in the vicinity when he comes back, which could be ay second now."

They promptly picked up their feet and ran like never before.  Although James half-expected to turn and see a senile and murderous Salazaar Slytherin, nothing and no one followed them.  Soon, they slowed to a walk and took in the scenery.  There was a village up ahead soon.  It looked warm and inviting, but terribly old fashioned.

"This is just great!" Sirius was complaining, as they entered the little town. "This is the _old country_!  No color photographs, high-tech broomsticks, or joke shops!  No joke shops!  How people survived here I'll never understand…" (Only Sirius would have had the gall to complain about something like that when being chased by a homicidal madman.)

"We could always teach them a thing or two," James suggested slyly, "Let them in on some good pranks." He and Sirius exchanged devious looks.

Lily and Dara exchanged exasperated looks and burst out laughing.

The boys looked hurt.

"This is a SERIOUS matter," Remus told them, "We have a chance to improve their lives-"

"You can 'improve lives' when we know that we can keep ours," Lily said, "Let's find somewhere to stay for the night.  It's getting dark." She paused, "Do any of you have money?"

"Yeah," Sirius said, "Some."

"Me too," James offered, "I hope that they'll accept this money."

"Wizarding money has always been the same, James," Lily informed him, "You should pay attention in History of Magic," she scolded.

"Lily, I see you snoring through that class all the time!  The only reason you know all of that is 'cause you stole Binn's notes!"

Lily turned red, "I didn't steal them, I- borrowed them.  You're just jealous that you didn't think of it first." She gave him a triumphant smile and proceeded to walk through the door of a little inn, "You guys wait here.  No, you may NOT go wandering and getting us all caught!  Wait for Dara and I here."

"Lily-" Dara started once they were inside, "I don't think that this is a place that I'd like to spend the night.

The small room was dark mahogany and had the insignias of snakes crawling over the walls.  They seemed so life-like that you expected them to start to hiss.

"This gives me the creeps, alright," Lily whispered.

Then a door off to the side opened with an ominous creak.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Meanwhile, the boys were, of course, getting into trouble.  They had wandered off down the deserted street.  Snape had absolutely refused to go with them.  He stood, tapping his foot, by the entrance to the inn wondering what deity he had so offended that he was sentenced to this terrible fate.

"No, no!" Snape could hear in the distance, "Use a long 'a' in the spell.  Yes, yes!  That's called a prank.  Yes, I KNOW it's gross, but you can really wreak havoc with that one!  No!  No, wait…there's other ones…"

Snape scowled darkly and tuned them out.  Just then, there was a faint prick between his shoulder blades.  He froze.

"Don't move," the voice said.  Snape didn't need to have that warning verbalized to comply to it.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"What a weird town!" James said.

"It gives me the creeps," Sirius said, looking over his shoulder, "We've only seen one other person besides ourselves."

"And you scared him off too," Remus complained.

"I did not-"

"Yes, you did."

"I did," Sirius grinned impishly. "But he looked as if he wanted to leave anyway.  What is up with this town?!"

"It's definitely eerie in a strange way…what's it called anyhow?" Peter asked.

No one knew.  

"I don't like it here," James announced, "Let's go and see what the girls are up to."

They walked back, breaking into a run and came to a stop at a familiar door.

"This is it, isn't it?" Sirius asked peering at the door, "It looks like it."

"It is," James affirmed.

"Guys," Remus said softly, "Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure, Remus, unless I'm going blind this is the same door!" James said impatiently.

"James, there IS something wrong about this town!  Did you see the houses we passed?  All dark and quiet.  Each one was dark green or black.  And look at this inn!"  They looked for the first time at the sign declaring its name.

"It's called the _Basilisks' Nest_."

They glanced at the door for a second and then threw it open and rushed inside.

Hehehe…cliffie!  Fun fun fun… *evil laugh*

OMG I wrote more!  And it is quite long for me ; )  Yeah!  This occasion deserves a review or two…

Well, I'll have more sometime!

See ya!  Review!  Thank you all!

Mrs Grim


	5. Disappearances and Other Disasters

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling's……………  
  
A/N: I really have nothing to say…review!!!  
  
Back to the Past  
  
By Mrs Grim  
  
Chapter Four  
  
Disappearances and Other Disasters  
  
James was fully prepared to have to rescue his girlfriend from the horrors that must be inside the Basilisks' Nest. He was NOT prepared to see her unharmed, not even the slightest bit worried, and flirting with some boys.  
  
"Lily Evans!" he cried wretchedly.  
  
Lily looked up and blinked at him slowly.  
  
"Oh, those are my friends," she told the boys she and Dara had been talking too, "James, the loudmouth there, Sirius, Remus, and Peter. Guys, these nice gentlemen are Benjamin and Andrew."  
  
Dara was very amused at the shocked look on James' face, "They were just telling us about the inn. We can stay here tonight."  
  
"No," James started, clearly affronted, "I really don't think that that is necessary-"  
  
"But we insist," said Benjamin, smiling. James could have beaten him. He was looking forward to it, actually. "The ladies are very entertaining. We would sure like to get to know them better. I'm sure we'd all get along well."  
  
Over my dead body…James thought. Then he realized that if they didn't find somewhere to stay, he probably WOULD be dead.  
  
Remus spoke up, since he was the sensible one, "We'd be happy to stay the night. Thank you very much for offering."  
  
James sneered at him, even though he knew he had done the right thing. Remus sneered right back.  
  
"How many rooms do you need?" Andrew asked sweetly, "We have two-bedders and three-bedders…"  
  
"Two two's and a three," Remus answered.  
  
"Wait!" Sirius spoke up, "that means someone is going to have to stay in the same room as the slimy git-faced Slytherin. Not me."  
  
"Or me."  
  
"No way."  
  
Something suddenly dawned on Dara, "Where IS Snape?" she asked, looking around. "What did you do to him?!"  
  
"Nothing!" James said, puzzled, "He stayed right by the inn…"  
  
"Great!" Sirius scoffed, "Trust him to go off and get killed! Why couldn't he just wait until we got back…"  
  
"Back…?" Benjamin repeated.  
  
"Long story," Lily said quickly, with a look at Siirus, who gulped nervously and gave her a wide grin. "We should really find our- er- friend."  
  
"But, we'll help you, of course!" Benjamin said with a big smile.  
  
  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
  
  
The search was basically a waste of time. There was no sign if anyone, much less Snape. It was very dark and very foreboding. The inkeeper boys were help, though. They seemed to know people in the town. Although Benjamin went to many doors, none of them actually saw who lived in the houses. Soon, Dara was asleep on her feet.  
  
"This is ridiculous!" she burst out. "There is really no hope of finding him this late. We need to sleep too! We'll find him in the morning. I mean, he can't be in TOO bad of a predicament, can he?"  
  
  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
  
  
If Snape had heard her words, he would have begged to differ. Being tied to a chair, gagged, and hit a few times for good measure qualified as a VERY bad predicament. He was dazed. His life was in the hands of his mortal enemies. Doesn't that just make you feel all warm and tingly inside?  
  
Snape would have been as good as dead if there hadn't been the little fact of not being able to get back without him. Right now, he decided that he had been sitting wherever he was long enough. He didn't need them to rescue him anyway! He would show them! Stupid Gryffindors!  
  
"So we meet again, boy," said a sickeningly familiar voice suddenly. Snape's heart plummeted.  
  
On second thought...  
  
  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
  
  
The search was abandoned. This was not out of cruelty, well not on most parts, but due to necessity. Everyone needed rest and they'd be damned if they'd let Snape ruin it.  
  
However, they would see Snape much sooner than they thought when they dropped off to sleep.  
  
The night, however was not a peaceful one.  
  
First there was a scream in the night. Peter had trod upon a mouse when sneaking out for a midnight snack. That was fixed easily. A pillow (or two, or three) in his face and they got back to sleep.  
  
Then, there was another scream (or two) in the night. This one was muffled and no one found out what was the cause of it until the morning.  
  
'WHAT?!?!" James Potter was deep red with pure rage, "Where are they you-" he advanced on Benjamin and Andrew, who retreated, wide eyed, to behind a counter, "I know you did something! So help me, I'll-" he lunged at the two boys and was tripped artfully by Remus.  
  
"Sorry, James," he said absently. "Now," he stared at the innkeepers. "Was it you?"  
  
They didn't look at each other, but their faces were open and innocent, "We would never have!- that is-"  
  
Remus nodded and James seethed. The Marauders went outside where the sun was shining.  
  
"If they were lying then I'm Santa Claus," Sirius spouted out.  
  
"Who is-" James started.  
  
"Muggle reference," Remus told him.  
  
James was still confused, "But I don't get it."  
  
Sirius rolled his eyes, "Aren't you getting off track. You supposed to be on a rampage, filled with terrible anger at the kidnapping of your girlfriend!"  
  
James scowled at him, "So YOU'RE not supposed to be worried?! Everyone knows you have a crush on her!"  
  
Sirius put on a pained expression, "So you finally found out. Lily was afraid to tell you that we're getting married-"  
  
James hit him over the head, "You know what I mean, Padfoot. Leave my girlfriend out of it!"  
  
Sirius grinned wickedly.  
  
Peter sighed, "You BOTH are getting off track!"  
  
"Since when did YOU become the voice of reason?" Sirius asked, "That's usually Remus."  
  
"Thank you," Remus replied. "That compliment coming from the troublemaker of the gang.."  
  
"Why, thank you!"  
  
"What am I, then?" James asked warily.  
  
"You're the brains," Remus told him.  
  
Sirius interrupted, "What!? Why can't I be the brains? I'm smart."  
  
"You wanted to be the troublemaker, you can't be both."  
  
"Why not?" he pouted.  
  
"What about me?" Peter fairly squeaked.  
  
"You're that guy that tags along and always gets us into trouble-"  
  
"I'M the troublemaker-"  
  
"I thought you didn't WANT to be the troublemaker, Sirius," James reasoned.  
  
"I changed my mind. He can be the worry wart."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Well, you DO-"  
  
"Shut up!" Remus shouted, "That is ENOUGH of that! Can we get going?!"  
  
"Yes, oh great voice of reason-"  
  
"Shut up, Sirius…"  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
  
  
A/N: I'll end it here…  
  
Review! Thank you sooo much to everyone who has!  
  
RSA- you ROCK! Hehe, you make me very happy! ^_^ You get a special thank you!  
  
Mrs Grim 


	6. Chapter Five

A/N: Uhmmm…I stole the 'she gasped like a good Gothic heroine' from Elizabeth Peters. I love that line…^_^  
  
Disclaimer: J.K. owns them. I own Dara and the innkeepers, but you can have the innkeepers. They're weird anyways. Elizabeth Peters owns the line mentioned above.  
  
Back to the Past  
  
By Mrs Grim  
  
1 Chapter Five  
  
2 More bad guys, some predicaments, and…a…a sexy Salazaar?!  
  
Dara opened her tired eyes and blinked. Blackness surrounded her. She tried again, rubbing her eyes and then opened them wide. It was still very dark. Impenetrable darkness. She reached out a hand and felt around her. She was lying down on something. A bed, yes. It was amazing how much you could tell about your surroundings by feeling them.  
  
She had wondered at first why she hadn't been bound hand and foot. But, now, she saw that even if she'd risked escape, she couldn't see a bloody thing. And she didn't particularly want to break her neck before she got to safety. She would go bored out of her mind if she didn't do SOMETHING, though. She risked making noise.  
  
"Lily?" The question was more a hopeful last chance than anything. She didn't expect an answer.  
  
There was a slight shuffle somewhere in the room and the lights went on. The sudden glare was nearly blinding. She squinted and covered her eyes with her arm. She saw, however, the young man sitting calmly in a chair a ways in front of her with a cold smile on his face.  
  
"You!" she gasped like a good gothic heroine.  
  
"Yes, me," Salazaar smiled warmly, "Who did you expect?"  
  
Dara blinked. Did he just make a…joke? She realized that she was feeling ridiculously relaxed. She was alive and Slytherin didn't seem to be trying to kill her at the moment. He looked as if he was trying to smile. He had a certain appeal, if he hadn't been evil, of course. (A/N: Hey! We all know Tom Riddle was hot, well, now Slazaar is too! *gets weird looks* Hehe! I did NOT plan that…oh well! ^_^) The pictures on the mantle that she and Lily had giggled over earlier had been of him. Why did evil always look so good? Well, she modified, with the exception of Snape…and Malfoy…and…oh, stuff it, it sounded good!  
  
"I," he said, "have a proposition."  
  
  
  
-*-  
  
Lily's eyes opened and she nearly screamed. Of all the things to wake to, she had to wake to THAT face.  
  
Snape gave her a surly look, "Scream if it makes you feel better. Stupid Gryffindors. Don't have an ounce of bravery in them…"  
  
She tried to straighten and then realized that she was tied to a chair. This was not good. It also left her little room for moving.  
  
"Where-" she began.  
  
Snape anticipated her, "We are in the hideous clutches of that masterful, yet murderous, founder, known to the world at large as Salazaar 'the Snake' Slytherin."  
  
"How terribly poetic," Lily commented dryly, "Remind me to smack you when I can move. You take our predicament lightly to say the least."  
  
Snape suddenly grimaced, "Oh, yes, sure! I am entitled to be less then morose, however. YOU have not been beat up, tied up for nearly 24 hours and not fed to boot. I would appreciate if you would allow me a bit of good humor."  
  
"Sorry," Lily said meekly.  
  
"Thank you." Snape proceeded to ignore her completely.  
  
Lily looked around the room. It was not a dark, dank basement, like in all the mystery stories. It was a lovely room filled with antiques. No, not antiques. The object would have been considered new in this time period. She was seated in a high-backed, velveted chair with armrests. She was tied to it very securely. Snape was opposite her in an identical chair.  
  
"Where is Dara?" Lily asked hopefully. "She was with me when I was taken."  
  
"I haven't seen her lately," he spat. "Perhaps Slytherin had done away with her."  
  
Lily snorted, "That was silly and uncalled for. YOU'RE just bitter because she refused to go out with you last year-"  
  
Snape covered his ears, "I don't need to hear this!"  
  
Lily ignored this, "So shut your arrogant, slimy mouth!"  
  
"What does it matter to me what Ms. Playboy Cover girl decides to do?"  
  
Lily didn't ask how Snape knew that muggle expression, "Don't call her that!"  
  
"Playboy!"  
  
"Shut up Snape or so help me God I'm going to-"  
  
"What?" he asked. "Attempt to wiggle yourself out of the tightly binding ropes, then retrieve a weapon from somewhere and chop of my head?"  
  
Lily didn't dignify this with a reply. She instead bit her lip and thought of more important things.  
  
Like: Where was everyone…and- why wasn't she dead already?  
  
-*-  
  
At that moment, James was flying through the air on a fast trip towards the ground.  
  
He hit.  
  
"Ow! Damn it!"  
  
Sirius yanked him up be his arm and gave him a brisk pat on the back.  
  
"Watch out for those holes, Prongs, that's the third one you've fallen into and-"  
  
"Shut up, Padfoot!"  
  
"I'm just worried about you, Jamesie! These lapses of stupidity are becoming more frequent," he continued.  
  
Peter distracted them by screeching as he also fell into a hole.  
  
"Oh, God!" Remus cried, "Not another one!"  
  
"What's that supposed to mean?" James asked.  
  
"We don't need TWO crazy people around here-"  
  
"Certainly not," Sirius commented, "Bad James. Bad Peter. Loony bin time!"  
  
"THREE crazy people, " Remus modified.  
  
"Haha," said Sirius.  
  
"Where are what's his name and what's his name?" James asked, helping Peter up.  
  
"I don't see them-" Remus started. Then he had a premonition. His senses were a lot sharper than normal, since he was a werewolf.  
  
"Guys," he said, with a glance behind them, "I think we should run." He then set the example.  
  
They stopped under the roof of a little balcony.  
  
"WHO are we running from, Remus?" Sirius asked.  
  
"THEM!"  
  
"Who?"  
  
"Let's just say that you are now Santa Claus."  
  
"Oh. Damn. I was wrong?"  
  
"Dead wrong," Remus told him. "I'll bet that they've been in league with Slytherin from the beginning."  
  
James got a far off look on his face, "Does this mean I can smash their faces now?"  
  
"Yes," Remus replied with a sigh, "If you must."  
  
James rubbed his hand together, "Flirt with MY girlfriend! I'll show them…"  
  
  
  
-*-  
  
  
  
A/N: Oooh!!! Jamesie is not happy! And those nice boys were not so nice! Oh, well.  
  
Hehe, well, how many are scarred for life now that I made Slytherin handsome? Show of hands? Well, I may be scarred since it was my idea…oh well, LOL, poor Salazaar! I DO feel bad for him. He's evil sure, and a murderer, and the scum of the earth…I lost the point to this. Well, I can feel bad for him if I want to! ^_^  
  
Okay, enough of my ramblings…hehe…ahem! Yes, I am done.  
  
Please review! PLEASE?!  
  
Mrs Grim 


	7. In which some very bad things happen and...

**Back to the Past**

**By Mrs Grim**

**Chapter Six**

Dara was getting quite amused.  This was the most strange and totally bogus thing that had ever happened to her…not to mention the scariest.  Then- why wasn't she frightened?

"A proposition," she repeated calmly.

He smiled again, "Well, I know who you are."

"Okay…and this is important because???"

"You," he ignored her, "are no Gryffindor."

Dara bit her lip and thought quickly.

"Oh, I'm sorry.  I must have been mistaken for the past seven years of where my dorms room was-"

"You have no Gryffindor blood," he said loudly.

"I- no, I don't." Dara made a face and couldn't believe that someone had found out, "I AM one of your descendants."

"Not straight down the line, but pretty close." He tapped his fingers on the arm of his chair thoughtfully.  This was very annoying.  Tap…tap…

"Yes," she said quietly. "I have known that for quite sometime." She looked at him again, "And, I am GLAD that I am in the house where I belong!"

There was silence.  Only the tapping continued on.

"Snape is a Slytherin too," she said, ignoring the tapping.

"So?" 

He was beginning to infuriate her, "So- where is he for one?  He's here isn't he?  I know he is!" 

"He is currently our guest, yes."

"Guest?" she mocked. "How fitting."

"I am beginning to lose my patience," he warned.

Dara jumped up, "And so am I!  Stop that infernal tapping dammit!"

He tapped two more times for good measure and then stopped.

"Are you willing to hear my proposal? Or shall I dump you back with your friends?"

This sparked something, "My friends…yes.  Why haven't you done away with us?  You only need to kill one after all."

Slytherin looked almost sad, "You don't understand, do you?"

Dara just stared.  He was insane.  She sat down.

He stood up and began to pace, "Sure I could do away with you all.  But it's Godric's heir I want.  There's no need for all of you to die."

"Sooo..??"

"So once I've killed the Gryfindor boy, then-"

"Hold it!" Dara started pacing also.  She was nervous with him walking around. "If this has anything to do with killing my friends, I'm out."

Salazaar quickly intercepted her and took a hold of her arm, "Now listen!  There's no need to kill ALL of them! Once I kill Godric's heir, no one can return to the future.  Now that does not mean that I'll kill everyone.  I'm not one to make my descendants suffer.  Especially such good-looking descendants."

Dara shook her head.  This was twisted.  Bloody twisted.  And she was very confused and angry and confused some more.  Where were the boys?  They were the last hope!  And, well, she KNEW it was bad when those joke offs were the last chance…

-*-

"Ouch."

"Do shut up!" Benjamin growled, "I can't stand your whining."

"Ouch."

"For the love of Slytherin!  Are ALL people from the future this irritating?" Ben went on.

Sirius thought about this, "After we've been ambushed and are being taken to our deaths, yes.  Right about then we get irritating."

"It has to do with the 'taking to the deaths' part," James added.

"You see," Remus finished, "We're rather attached to our lives.  We'd like to keep them for a while."

"For a long while," Sirius put in.

"Yeah," contributed Peter.

"Well, shut up," Benjamin repeated and he continued to hold them at wand-point and herd them to some destination.  They could guess what it was.

*-*

Lily was in a sour mood.  She had been locked up and, most unfortunately, conscious with Severus Snape for over an hour or two.  She had lost track of time.  It was that bad.

"Snape," Lily tried, "Shouldn't we be planning to escape?"

He looked at her disdainfully, "Why?"  
  


The boy was infuriating!

"Well, if you WANT to be killed or trapped forever in the past, just SIT there on your lazy arse!"

"I will, thank you."

Lily fumed in silence for a few moments.

"Snape," she said slowly, eyeing the ground, "WHAT is that on the floor?"

He didn't bother to look, "The rug?"

"No, you idiot!  Rugs aren't long and thin.  Also, they don't move."

Snape peered at the little snake slithering towards Lily's feet.

"Oh, God!" she shrieked, "Kill it!  I mean- Oh, God," she repeated trying to inch away from it, "I hate snakes!"

The snake hissed loudly.  Lily was just waiting for it to bite her.

"It says that that was not a very nice thing to say."

Lily was stunned out of her shock, "What?!"

"It also adds," Snape continued, "That it has never harmed a human before."  Lily just stared. "And, it asks you not to shriek like that again, if you please."

"You're- you're a, a parselmouth?!"

Snape rolled his eyes, "No, I just made that up for my own amusement!  Yes, I am a parselmouth.  I'd appreciate of that didn't get around.  Okay?"

"Okay," Lily said meekly.  Then, as an afterthought, "Uh, tell it I'm sorry."

Snape looked pained, "I'd rather not talk to it, if you don't mind…"

"Snape, it could be our only chance of escape!  It could…gnaw the ropes! Or, or something."

Snape sighed, "Gnawing the ropes would be impossible since-"

"Do shut up.  Just talk to it!" She glared her most fierce glare and Snape subsided.  Lily could be scary.

Lily decided that after she'd heard Snape talk in parseltongue, she NEVER wanted to hear it again.  It sent chills up her spines.  Humans were not supposed to make noises like that.  She shivered.

"It has agreed to help us.  It says it knows where our wands are," Snape informed her.

"Does it work for Slytherin?" Lily asked, figuring most snakes were pretty evil.

"No, it hangs around mostly.  Doesn't have a criminal record."

Lily sighed with relief.  Things were looking up, definitely.  Now…where was Dara?  

-*-

Dara's head was spinning.  Was Salazaar Slytherin HITTING on her?  Oh, Gods, maybe death would be a blessing!  Sweet death.  She closed her eyes and pinched her cheek.  Damn.  It was real.

His hand crawled up her arm, "Well?"

"Aren't we, uh- related?" she asked lamely, searching for something to say.

He thought about this, "VERY distant.  We're talking hundreds of years here."

Well, that didn't work.  She was toying with the idea of begging for mercy when she thought of something else.  Slytherin hadn't brought any guards into the room.  He sure was egotistical, the poor thing.  That would be the end of him.  She suddenly blessed her mother for making her suffer through Tai kwon do.  It was worth it.  Hopefully, there were no guards outside.  This would, however, probably be too much to hope for.  One quick move would render him unconscious…could she pull it off?

A/N: GOD is this twisted!  I am scaring myself a bit.  Well, I don't like Slytherin very much.  He is QUITE a jerk but, do you really think he'd win and kill James???  Puh-leese!

Well, I am tired.

Review!

Mrs Grim


	8. Chapter Seven

Disclaimer- Not mine, never was, never will be… 

**A/N: Sorry!  Long, time no writing!  Prom, musical competitions and evil homework have hindered me! **

**Back to the Past**

**By Mrs Grim**

**Chapter Seven**

Snakes 

Lily's eyes nearly popped out of her head, but she kept her breathing steady by talking softly to herself.

"Breathe in…breathe out…Breathe in-"

"Will you stop that?!" Snape snapped, retrieving a knife from the snake he had spoken to earlier. "You're getting on my nerves."

"Oh, " Lily said with false sweetness.  Then she raised her voice and finished with a shout. "Do forgive me!  It's just that I've never been in a room with a dozen snakes except for **_in my NIGHTMARES_**!!!" 

One of the snaked glanced at her as if she were no more than an annoying bug buzzing in his ear.  It swished its tail near her foot and she shrieked.

Snape sighed and asked the snakes to 'please forgive his excitable companion.  One must have charity on those less intelligent beings, after all. First one to slither up her leg can come with us.'

"What did you say?" Lily asked suspiciously.

"I told them to leave you alone, of course."

"Uh, huh." Snape was freed of his bonds and he was about to cut her loose.  He paused.

"Snape…" Lily said tentatively. "Are you going to let me out?"

He didn't move and a slow smile spread onto his face.

"Snape?!"

"Oh, fine, fine," he answered at last. "But it would give me much more satisfaction to leave you there for a while."

Lily had to admit that she hadn't been the most amiable companion, but she'd never confess that to HIM. 

"Whatever, Snape.  James would pry off your tonails one by one, knock out all your teeth and then feed you, piece by piece, to the giant squid.  And I would help."

"Really?" he asked with a grin as he cut her loose. "I don't think Potter had the mental power to invent an image like that."

~~*~~

Dara was contemplating where exactly to hit him.  She wasn't really afraid of him.  He might be Salazaar Slytherin, but she figured that she could take him if he was alone.  Feeling his lips crawl up her cheek was a rather nasty experience.  She wasn't curious as to what was going to happen next since she thought she could guess.

So she hit him.  It worked better than she thought it would.  She had linked her fingers together and slammed her fists into the back of his neck.  It was quite a nice feeling that surrounded her as she heard him hit the floor.  She was almost at the door by that time.

She opened it and ran out only to find herself caught in another pair of arms.  Benjamin staggered back and caught her neatly.

"Oh damn!" she burst out when she realized she couldn't move her arms. "Of all the bloody terrible things to happen…" Andrew was right behind him and behind him were James, Sirius, and Peter.  She let out a couple more curses to relieve her feelings.  Their hands were bound behind them and she figured that they were mad and uncomfortable from their scowling faces.

"Hello," said James with a bright smile. "Fancy meeting you here."

"Good day boys," she replied coolly. "I see you were careless enough to get caught." 

"Bitch," Sirius remarked and Dara smirked.  Well, true, she had got herself caught too, hadn't she? 

"Shut up!" Salazaar had reached them by that time and his eyes were smoldering.

Before she could help it, Dara started giggling.  The situation was quite farcical.  It felt nice to laugh also, even if the time was not the most opportune.  Salazaar's face went blank and then he started to laugh also.  However it was cold and cruel.

"How nice of you all to become my guests," he said. "Andrew, take them to their rooms."

Dara was trying to stifle her giggles.  Benjamin squeezed her painfully and she gasped.

"I thought you were supposed to say something like, 'Take them to the dungeons'," she remarked breathlessly. "That is a much more suitable threat."

His eyes turned to her. "I'll deal with you later," he said shortly and turned on his heel to go after the boys.

"Oh, hell-" she muttered.

"Well," Benjamin told her seriously. "You should have just gone along with him.  If you don't- Well, just do what he says.  No one has much choice around here." He pulled her along in the opposite direction of the others.

She had caught a hint of sadness in his voice.  She prayed she hadn't imagined it.

"Well," she said carefully, "I'm sure that that's true.  He doesn't seem the most stable man.  I'm sure he could be cruel…" she left the sentence trailing invitingly but he didn't speak.

"What did he say to you?" her companion asked after a while.

"Oh- he- he, uh, well, he didn't _say_ much…"

His grip on her arm tightened and he walked faster.

"I'll get you out," he said firmly.

She had hoped for something like this, but it caught her off-guard.  

"What?"

"I'll get you out.  He can't do that to an innocent girl like you."  Dara doubted that she was very innocent, but wasn't going to argue.

"But you forget.  I can't get back unless everyone is with me.  But why-"

"He's a terror!" Benjamin said loudly. "I am ashamed to be his nephew!  The only reason that I am here is because he swore that he would kill my sister if I deserted him.  Now she's dead anyway.  Many of his subjects die.  Malnutrition, disease-" he broke off angrily. "I would like to kill him!" he finished heatedly.

"The truth comes out finally," said Slytherin from the shadows.

~~*~~

"Bugger this," Sirius muttered as he crossed his arms across his chest.  Why, oh why couldn't they just stay on one situation?  They were free- then caught.  Then almost broke free- then-

"Stuck," James said flatly, assessing their unfortunate situation.

Remus raised an eyebrow, "Must you be so monosyllabic?  Can't you talk like a normal human being?"

"Shut up, Moony!" James sneered. "I swear that if I had my wand I would curse you to oblivion."

"Now, James," Sirius said, pretending to be shocked. "That wasn't very nice.  If you cursed Moony, we couldn't get back."

"Not like we'll get back anyhow," James retorted.

Peter whimpered.

"Ohhh!!!  I KNEW this was a bad-"

"SHUT UP!"

James put his head in his arms and sighed.

"Lily is gone," he croaked. "What if I never see her again?  I don't care if Slytherin kills me!  Just to see her face one more time- I was going to propose to her you know.  At the end of the year.  I love her."

"Really?" James started as a new voice drifted in. "You were going to ask me to MARRY you?!"

Lily was standing in the doorway with tears of happiness, or so they assumed, in her eyes.

"You love me?!  Oh, James!" She flung herself into his arms and wept.  James patted her head. 

"Don't cry, please, er- Dammit I never know what to do with weeping females…"

"Press your advantage," Sirius informed him.  Lily shot him a nasty look.

"He is NOT going to our wedding," she said sternly, but couldn't stop her smile. "Are you really going to ask-"

"Yes!" James said. "I love you, Lily Rose Evans.  I want to marry you!"

Sirius rolled his eyes and Remus smiled while trying not to laugh.

**A/N: Sorry it took so long!  I have been, alas, busier than ever.**

**Reviews are motivating!  *hint hint***

**Mrs Grim**


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